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C. D. LAKE PRINTER RIBBON CCNTROL MECHANISM Filed Aug. 30. 1921 v Sheets-Sheet 1 "g" nnl 1,517,843 C. D. LAKE I PRINTER RIBBON QONTROL MECHANISM 7 sheets-sheet Filed Aug. 30. 1921 7 Shets-Sheet 5 C. D. LAKE PRINTER RIBBON CONTROL MECHANISM Fil ed Aug. 0, 1921 Dec, '2, 1924.

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C. D. LAKE PRINTER RIBBON CONTROL MECHANISM Filed g- 50, 1921 7 Sheets-Sheet 5 c. 13. LAKE PRINTER RIBBON CONTROL MECHANISM Filed Aug 30, 1921 7 Sheets-Sheet 6 35 VA; LII/4 Dec. 2, 1924- c. D. LA 'KE PRINTER RIBBON CONTROL MECHANISM i e so, 1921 7 Sheets-Sheet 7 mun m m,

wmyllllm WWW Patented Bee. 2,.

barre s r A CLAIR DENNISQIZQ' BAKE OF IBINGHAMTQN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO THE TABULAT- MACHINE COMPANY, A. CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

Application filed August 30, 1921. Serial No. 496,816.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known thatI, CLAm D.JJAKE, a citizen of the UnitedStates of America, residing at Binghamton, in the county of Broome and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful 1m iovements in Printer Ribbon Control fiechanism, of

which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

In prior-applications for Letters Patent filed by me, notably December 29, 1919, and Serial No. 465,868, filed April 30, 1921, I have shown and described tabulating machines of the Hollerith type having iii-addition to the regular tabulating mechanism a printing attachment for listing the figures brought by the operation of the machine, to the display window, and for printing totals and sub-totals of any or all of such figures as may be desired.

In, the use of such machines, it is desirable that the figures corresponding to the punchings of certain cards be printed in ink or a distinctive color, butheretofore no provision 2 for doing this has been devised or used; and

' it is the object of the present invention to provide means for use in conjunction with the'mechanism of the printing attachment and controlled preferably by punched holes in certain columns to print such figures or "the totals in a different color, usually red, while the other figures are printed in black or dark blue.

In all machines and devices of this general character an inking ribbon is almost universally employed to print the characters set up by the computing mechanism on a strip or sheet of paper, and my present invention consists in an attachment to such a printing mechanism which comprises a ribbon control which operates toshift a two-colored ribbon when so desired, so as to bring under the type from which an impression is to betel .011, that part of such ribbon as prints in a dis- 46 tinctive color.

This improvement is illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1 is a sectionalelcvation of the entire listing or printing attachment fora tabulat- 0 ing machine, with my improvement applied thereto.

- Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the listing attachment showing a portion of the tabulatinggmachine with which it is used. w lg. 3 is a front elevat on of the ribbon Serial No. 348,069, filed si tion the type holder and its operating electromagnet.

Fig. l is a sectional elevation of the parts shown in Fig. 3.

Figs. 5 and 6 are detail views in elevation of the parts which effect the ribbon shift.

1*ig. 7 is a front elevation of the parts shown in Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a plan view of the parts shown in Fig. 6.

Fig. 9 is a wiring diagram suiiicient to illustrate theopcrat-ion of my improvement.

Fig. 10 is a front elevation of a modification showing a multiple ribbon control.

Fig. 11 is a plan view of a modification showing a multiple ribbon control.

. Fig. 12 is a section on line 12-42 of Fig. 11.

The listing and total printing attachment is not directly involved in the present improvement, and is a piece of mechanism which is now well known in this art. In Figs. 1 and 2 it is shown'in some detail, but a (lQttlllOti description of its construction and mode of operation is not necessary. -Generally speaking. it comprises a series of verti' cnlly movable bars 1, carrying or adapted to raise type bars 2 having laterally moving spring actuated type 3 corresponding to the digits in a column on a tabulator card. There are as many type bars as there are registering wheels in the counters of the tabu laton-an l by means of controlling magnets 4 the vertical movable bars 1 are locked in a position which will bring to the printing p0- 3 which correspond to the perforations in the tabulator cards which pass under the contact brushes.

The bars 1 are mov'cd vertically by means of which a slide 5 main parts or elements, that is to say, for example, when a figure is to be printed the slide 5 traveling over guides 6 rises and carries up the bars 1 to the proper height to bring the proper type 3 into printing position, and the aper strip 7, passin over a platen or drum 8, is then printed by ham-' mers 9, worked by. the machine. No further description of the printin attachment is necessary herein, foruan orm of mechanism which contains the e ements above enumerated or their equivalents, and which contains a part corresponding to the slide 5, which is raised a sufficient amount each time that a figure is to be printed, will meet the requirements of this case.

constitutes one of the The printing attachment carriestwo rib- In this way provision is made for causing .bon rolls 10, with the usual appurtenances for red imprints to be made on the record sheet changing theirdirection of rotation. The when a perforation exists in a column on ribbon 11 is, carried by the usual guide rolls a card to which the plug connection is made. 12, between the type 3 and the platen 8, but Furthermore the plug connection permits therolls 12 which support the-ribbon in its any selected column to beused for controlpath'immediatel'y in front of the type are ling-ribbon shifting. As has been set forth carried by levers 13, pivoted to the stationabove, the ribbon is shifted only after the ary frame of the machine at 1 1. The ribbon energization of this magnet, so that while all is the ordinary two colored ribbon, the black ordinary listing is printed in black or blue orblue half of. which is normally in front ink, all credit cards, for example, are print of the type, or in the printing position, but ed in red. I the red half of'which may 'be'brought into Contacts 26 and 27 this position if the levers 13 constituting the lever 28 which is rigidlyfixed to varmature frame support for the front'rolls be raised. 19, when magnet 18 is energized, and the Pivotally connected with each one of the closing of these contacts prevents sparking levers 13 is a long bar 15, to which is conat the contact brushes when they are leaving moved.

' bring this stop 22 over the edge of the slide, erence to Figs. 1, 5 and 6. 1

This apparatus affords a very simple and,

my application Serial No. 165,868,' filed Referring now to Fig. 9, this shows a pos tion on the usual tabulator plugboard,

nected a spiral spring 16 that tendsto swing the punched hole in card. the entire 1011' bar 15 to the left, as shown The circuit through magnet 18is broken in Figs. 1an 4. Normally the lower end .by cam 29 (Figure 9) while clamped to the of this bar rests in contact with the slides attachl'nent rocker shaft #30 is an adjust- '5 as shown in Figs. 1 and 5, and by said able lever #31, which through its connecslide the bar is forced to the right to a potion with lever #28, mechanically releases sition in which it is held by a catch 17. By the armature #19 from magnetijtlS, and this catch it is always held in this its-normal the spring #32, upon Which contact #26 is position wherever the slide may be or to mounted, acts to retain the armature #19 whatever position vertically it may be in its normal position.

' Usually these printing attachments have Mounted in the instrument is an electrogroups of type corresponding to the several magnet 18 the armature 19 of which is rigcounters of the tabulator, and in the present idly fixed to the catch 17 and when this mag-' illustration the attachment is shown as havare closed by means of net is energized the catch 17 is lowered out, ing tire of such groups. 'One ribbon is used I of engagement with a swinging spring acfor all of such groups, but, as shown in Fig. l tuated locking lever 20 that holds the bar 15 12, the ribbon for each group is carried by in its normal position. The said bar. is a frame 25 which is movab1e, and in order therefore free to move on its pivotal conto print in red any group I employ a magnection with the lever 13, and will do so if net 18 for each frame 25- and by energizing the slide 5 be raised above its lower end.'. these magnets the ribbon forthat group may T0 the bar 15 is fixed an arm 21 carrying be shifted without moving the ribbon in sin-adjustable stop 22. When the bar 15 front of any other group. This is manihas been unlatched, and the slide 5 rises, festly am'ere amplification of the principle the bar swings to the left sufiiciently Ito involved in the. structure described by ref-- with the result that the bar 15 is raised and the lever 13 is swung upwardly to bring the effective solution of the problem ofprinting lower half of the ribbon-opposite the t pe. certain figures such as credits in distinctive Inorder that the parts shall preserve'tieir colors in listing attachments for tabulating proper relative positions, the bar 15 carries machines, and adds but very few and easily a' camplate 23 which contacts 'with the constructed partsto those necessary forthe slide 5, as shown in Fig. 6. operation of the main device.

lVhat I claim is: i portion of the conventional; diagram of 9. 1. The combination in a listing or printtabulator, which'is more-fully described in I part or element thereof which moves a given April 30, 1921, with the addition of the cirdistance during or in connection with each cuit 24, containingthe magnet 18. When' operation of printing,'of a shiftable ribbon,

a bar adapted by its movement to shift the same, a catch normally holding said bar in' it is desired to print in ,a distinctive color, this circuit is plugged in, in the usual way, and either by a push button or auton atian inoperative position, and" an electromagcally by a' punched hole in a card when a net for releasing said bar and permitting it figure is to be printed in red, the circuit is to come into operative closed and the magnet 18 energized. Plugrelation with said movable part,whereby it receives therefrom ingdcvice of the kind described, with a ging-in of themagnct is effected from the the movement necessary for shifting the I plug socket 35 to the selected plug-socket ribbon.

2. The combination in a or printlac ing device of the kind described, with a ribbon support normally stationary but adapted to be shifted to present different colored parts of the ribbon to the printing position of means for shifting the supports for this purpose, an electromagnet, and means controlled thereby for normally holding said shifting means in inoperative position, and means for operating the same to shift the ribbon when said magnet is energized.

3. The combination in a listing or printing device of the kind described, with a ribbon support normally stationary but adapted to be shifted to present dilierent colored arts of the ribbon to the printing position, of a bar pivoted to said supports, a slide constituting an element of the printing device which moves a given distance when-.

ever a figure is to be printed, means for holding said her in an inoperative position, and an electromagnet which releases said bar and permits it to come into operative relation tosaid slide and to be raised thereby to an extent sufiicient to shift the ribbon.

4. The combination in a. listing or printing device of the kind described, with a ribbon support normally stationary but adapted to be shifted to present different colored parts of the ribbon to the printing positiongi. spring actuated bar pivotally suspended from said support, a catch normally holding said bar in inoperative position, a slide constituting an element of the printing device which moves a given distance when ever a figure is to be printed, and an electromagnet for releasing said catch and permitting an adjustable stop carried by said bar to come into the path of the moving slide and thereby to shift the ribbon support.

5. In a tabulatingimachine or the like, which is adapted to print items derived from perforated records .upon a record sheet, means for listing certain items in a different color upon the record sheet, and means for controlling the color of printing the listed records by the perforations in the record cards, said means being adapted to be selectively controlled by any desired record card column.

6. The invention set forth in claim 5 in which a plug connection is utilized for coupling the color controlling means to the desired column of a tabulator plugboard.

7. In a tabulating machinehaving printer devices controlled by perforated record cards, multi-color ink ribbon means associated with said printing devices, and means including a selecting magnet and a circuit therefor selectively controllable by any de sired record card column and controlled during the operation of the tabulating machine for controlling said multi-color devices I whereby certain records are made in one color and others in another color.

In testimony whereof I hereto afix my signature.

CLAIR DENNISON LAKE. 

